Monday, July 20, 2015

with bated breath..

I'm always nervous about the first blocking of a garment, but never more so that when there is alpaca involved.Alpaca fleece makes a beautiful, luscious yarn with lovely drape and a buttery handle. It also lacks the "memory" of wool, and is well-known for it's tendency to stretch and sag...not ideal when knitting a garment and unless you're aware and make allowances, you're more likely to end up with a knitted dress than a jumper.My Daelyn came off the needles this afternoon and has just come out of it's first bath. I used Berocco Ultra Alpaca worsted for this project which is a 50/50 wool-alpaca blend, hence my nerves. I was as careful as I could be during the whole process and it now is carefully laid flat to dry.

It fit beautifully across the shoulders and chest when I tried it on before dunking it. The sleeves and body were a little on the short side, which was deliberate on my behalf to accommodate for the drop of the alpaca. I'm remaining ever hopeful that the combination of shortening the length and the inclusion of 50% wool in the yarn will be enough to balance the finished proportions.Until it dries though, I will just have to hold my breath and hope. (and I think this is the closest to accurate colour as I'm ever going to get with this jumper!)

I think the blend sounds perfect...enough wool to lend some memory and strength. It looks beautiful and it sounds like all your preparation are logical. if it goes wrong now, you can let yourself off the hook, there was nothing that had not been taken into account. Are those raglans? they are very nice and wide if so. Lovely all around. And so perfect for ol Melbin.